[LIT] Writing Centers in Middle School?

[Beverly Maddox]

Thanks, Cathy, for the referral to Richard Kent's book.  I'm ordering
it frm Amazon tomorrow--we use an Amazon Visa for household and travel
expenses to get the bonus points for books and I think we've got
enough points to order this book!  I googled his name and "Writing
Centers" and found a great article by him at
<http://projects.uwc.utexas.edu/praxix/?+book/print/121>

May, you might be interested in this article, too.  I especially like
the idea of training some of our fluently writing 8th graders next
year to work as student "writing coaches."  We're pretty close to two
high schools--reckon some juniors and seniors could staff the center?
I'm pretty jazzed about this and think I'll write a grant to the local
Education Foundation to support it.  I'd like to get a cart of
AlphaSmarts or Danas with a printer to use for the program.  No need
to tie up the computer lab since space is so limited in my
over-crowded building.

Looks like I'll need to convince my principal to build some writing
center time into our schedule--maybe a rotating study hall period?
'Twill be hard with a 4X4 block schedule, but I'd like to convince him
to take a risk such as scheduling some classes for 45 minutes daily
instead of 90 min. alternating days...such a bold move would make him
a paragon among principals, none of whom currently understand
scheduling....

Bev Maddox, Rhetorically minded in Little Rock
"I always wondered why somebody doesn't do something about that.  Then
I realized I was somebody."  --L. Tomlin